Hello! I am new to essential oils even though they have been around for a while. What are people's opinions on them? Do you have any favorites? What are the best places to buy them? How to tell if claims they make with an oil are legit?

I was looking at young living and NOW brands. A 15ml bottle of basil from YL is $31 but a 30ml bottle at Two Farm Kids is $18.99. (If you compare the YL catalogue to prices at 2FK, YL is normally double the cost). Is NOW not as good quality? If you get more for less isn't the other brand I can buy locally better? Or am I missing something?

There's tons of info out there to wade through. There are conflicting theories on quality vs. price as well.
I understand there are only a few distilleries that process these oils so that means they all start out the same quality. However, then comes the diluting. I will say from my own comparison testing (foam plate, paper towel tests) the YL brands performed exceptionally better.
I have friends that order offline from Native American Naturals, and they like their oils. I have also tried Saje, Escents and of course the Now brand and whatever I see pop up at Winners.
IMO: I do not like the NOW brand. They leave residue after drying (shouldn't) and ate through the foam plate (again, bad)
There's lots of folks out there that love oils and they are great when used properly.
Remember to : use a carrier oil for topical application
Never put oils into the ear drum.
Any oils from citrus are highly toxic for cats.
Hope some of this helps.

I really like the brand plant therapy. They have a website online that you can order from and if you are on Facebook they have their own Facebook page called safe essential oil recipes, which has a ton of different things you can do with your oils. I find this company very knowledgeable and will answer your questions honestly. They also have a kid safe line so you know what oils you can use on your children.
Another thing to remember is to never ingest essential oils either.

I have been using essential oils for a while now, and have tried a couple of brands along the way. I like Saje, but they are not always 100% pure. You can tell this from the price alone. They are quite inexpensive.I have settled on Young Living now, and love them. I was a bit sceptical at first because it just seems like another over priced pyramid scheme, but so far, they are living up to all that they preach.
It just really depends on what you want to do with the oils. If you just like diffusing for the scent, even they are not pure, that won't make a difference. If you want them for health benefits, then you definitely want pure oils.
Despite what other's may say, you do not always need a carrier oil when applying topically. It just depends on how you react to the oils. Some oils are much hotter than others, and will irritate the skin without a carrier oil, but other's are not. For example, peppermint can be a hotter oil that may irritate the skin, but for myself, I apply it without a carrier with no problems. I use it for my headaches. You absolutely can ingest 100% pure essential oils as well. Things like oregano oil are great for you health for example.
Hope this helps.

You should always always dilute essential oils in a carrier oil because they can cause irritation or burn the skin if not.if you do plan on ingesting them you should most definitely talk to your doctor or a naturopathy doctor before doing so as the essential oil can have a big affect on your body and medications that you are taking. Robert tisserand is very knowledgeable about essential oils and if you google him you can learn a lot about the safe practice of using essential oils.

I sell Young Living oils and I use them all the time because of their Seed to Seal guarantee. They are 100% pure and I want to be sure that I know what I put in and on my body. The other reason I like them is that the person that sells them to you should be able to provide you with lots of knowledge about them, recipes, classes etc, so you can learn about them.